Summer 2023

Donor Profile: Barbara and Mark Daugherty

The very first grant PFT ever received—in 1993—was from the Weeden Foundation, a family foundation with roots in California. They saw the merit of supporting private, voluntary forest conservation, complementing their traditional focus on public lands. Thirty years later, Barbara Weeden Daugherty is continuing that tradition.

Barbara grew up enjoying the wilds of Northern California, exploring the not-yet dammed and re-routed Trinity River. It was a love of nature fostered by her family, especially her father, Dr. William Weeden. Her grandfather, John Weeden, who established the family foundation, was a conservationist. Her husband, Mark, whom she met at UC Berkeley, is also a conservationist and outdoor enthusiast. On a recent PFT field trip to the headwaters of the Trinity River (see p.4), we asked Barbara and Mark about their support for PFT and why our work is important.

Private lands conservation is a really important part of the solutions we need to protect biodiversity and watersheds. You can’t do it all on public lands. A lot of the West is checkerboarded ownership—one piece public, and the next private—so we need private lands to be conserved too. You can really see this in the Trinity Headwaters project, where PFT is not only directly conserving 10% of the upper Trinity River watershed, but linking up with all the federal lands, creating a major wildlife conservation corridor.

I also like that PFT involves local communities in their conservation and helps landowners do more ecological management. This is essential work addressing climate change with natural solutions. The Foundation has a focus on protecting biodiversity, and PFT’s work accomplishes that.

— Barbara Daugherty

To learn how you can support PFT’s vital work combatting climate change with forests, contact Kevin Connelly at kconnelly@pacificforest.org or at 415.561.0700 ext. 32.

More in this Issue of ForestLife

• President’s Letter: Aren’t we there yet?
• Managing for Climate Resilience on Mount Ashland Demonstration Forest
• Saving the Source: Conserving 11,000 acres of the Trinity River Headwaters
• Harnessing the Power of Nature to Address Climate Change
• Beyond the Trees: Our New Award-Winning Film
• Celebrating 30 Years and Forest Wildlife: Forest Fete 2023